All It Takes is an Apology
by MydnytAngel
Summary: Somehow he has to fix their broken bond, how he's going to do that, Damon has no idea. But he's gotta try right?
1. Chapter 1

Damon froze as he watched Elena leave the Grill and he grabbed Stefan's arm. "I want to," he said, softly. "I'm not taking the fall for this one." He moved past his brother to follow Elena. "Elena," he said, and he was stopped dead in his tracks as the palm of her hand made contact with his cheek. He hadn't been prepared for that, but he should have been. It didn't hurt, not physically. It had been a long time since she had slapped him, so he really had messed up tonight. But she wasn't totally innocent either, and he wasn't going to let her walk all over him this time.

"How dare you?" She flared, angry tears glistening in her eyes. "How could you do that to me Damon? How could you be so mean and heartless? Do you not care about anyone but yourself?"

He raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "How was I supposed to know she was your mother?" he asked. "She gave you up, she sucks. Didn't we already go through this?" Then he paused. "That's right. We did do this already. And you seemed all on the bandwagon with her sucking, until you found out that I killed her. Newsflash, Elena. I'm a vampire. I've killed a lot of people, and I'm not sorry about one of them. I don't have to be. So in reality, you're the one that messed up here, not me. You didn't tell me what your mother's name was, so don't blame this on me."

Elena stared at him in disbelief. "Wow," she said, softly. "Thought you were better than this. Guess you aren't who I thought you were." She went to push past him, intent of heading back to her boyfriend, but he gently grabbed her arm. "Let go of me."

"Who did you think I was Elena?" he asked. "Did you think I was some saint? Like my perfect brother?" He was beginning to hope that Elena was one of the few people that saw him for him, not some shadow of his brother, but he was wrong, like he often was lately.

"Hardly," she answered. "I just… I didn't think you would be this mean, especially to me."

Damon released her arm and sighed. "Elena…" he said in defeat then moved closer to her as a strange man approached them. Despite her anger towards him, she did allow him to stand in front of her, a hand on her arm once more. "Who are you?"

"I have a message for you," he said, his eyes trained on Elena. "You have to stop looking. She doesn't want to know you or talk to you."

"Isobel?" Elena whispered, trying to move around Damon. "That means…"

Damon held her back and shook his head. "He's being compelled," he said. Just what he needed right now. This girl caused more trouble than she was worth.

"Do you understand?" The man asked.

Elena jumped but she nodded. "Yes, I understand," she said hurriedly, then screamed as the man jumped in front of an on- coming car. "Oh god," she whispered into Damon's chest, not realizing he had pulled her close to him.

"We have to go," he said, his hand sliding into hers as she started tugging her away from the scene. He was almost angry with himself. She was only one that could make him the angriest person alive, only to have him jump to her rescue the first sign of trouble.

Something caught her eye and she pulled free from his grasp as she picked up the fallen cell phone. Then she did allow Damon to lead her to his car. "Stefan," she said, as she kept glancing over her shoulder in the direction of the grill.

"Call him," Damon said simply as he peeled out from the curb. He was pushing well over the speed limit, but he slowed down when they were a few miles from the accident. "Are you okay?"

"I'm not hurt if that's what you mean," she said, her thumbs moving over the keypad of her cell phone to type out a text message.

"Fair enough," he said, finally pulling into his driveway. She followed him closely as he went inside, locking the door behind them as she headed to the kitchen. "Elena," he said, peeling off his jacket and flexing his arms. "I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't… it's not like I did it to hurt you." He didn't know why he felt like he needed to explain himself to her, but he didn't want her to be angry anymore.

"You're trying to hurt everyone Damon," she said, folding her arms as she leaned against the counter. "Because Katherine broke you're heart, and you want everyone else to be as miserable." Her eyes seemed to have softened quite a bit since they had left the Grill, and try as he might, he didn't have a smart ass comeback for her.

Damon clenched his jaw and looked away from her. "I'll live."

"Yes, I suppose you will," she said, making her way toward him as she turned his gaze back toward her. "It doesn't have to be like this Damon. Not everyone is out to hurt you."

"Like they could," he muttered, jerking his head from her soft touch.

"I know that you and I… have a lot of issues," she said, lifting her shoulder slightly as she thought about her words. "But you're my friend and I worry about you, and… I don't like to see you like this."

"Dually noted," he said offering her a small smile. "I'll work on it. And perhaps next time something big comes up in your life, you could clue me in, don't fancy a black eye from you."

She smiled back at him, happy the tension was finally broken between them, when she heard a strange nose from the living room. Damon placed a quick finger over her lips, signaling her to be quiet, so clearly Stefan wasn't home. Someone else was in the Salvatore house.


	2. Chapter 2

Damon moved through the house like a predator, keeping Elena close to him but behind his body. She was very aware of the way his hand clutched hers and the tension in his body ready to take out anything that would pose a threat to her or himself. She noticed her history teacher in the hallway and she relaxed slightly. "Mr. Saltzman?"

Damon paused and moved more in front of her. "Most people knock," he said.

"You killed my wife," Alaric said angrily. "You're a monster."

Elena moved around Damon's protective stance. "You can't be here," she said. "He will kill you if you attack him. Just trust me. You don't want to do this." She knew he had a right to be angry and she didn't blame him but if he attacked Damon, especially with her here, Damon would kill him. She couldn't let that happen on her watch.

"I'm not leaving," he said. "Move."

Elena folded her arms. "You know, too many people have a death wish in this town," she muttered, rubbing her temple. "You can't hurt him, especially with me standing here. He's different now." Damon had instincts and he was already fragile. Katherine's pain was too recent to be risking human's coming after him. It was a blood bath waiting to happen. While she cared for him, she knew what Damon was capable of.

Alaric glared at her. "A monster is a monster Elena," he said, and before she could blink she saw a stake go flying through the air and a scream tumbled from her lips.

"Relax," Damon said, holding the stake. "I have much better reflexes than that." He grasped her arm, surprisingly gentle, and moved her behind him once more.

Elena shoved him lightly. "Stop trying to pick a fight with him," she said. "I'd rather you not kill anyone in front of me." She had been a little scared seeing the stake head in his direction. No one understood him like she did. She understood his reasons, whether she liked them or not.

"Rather not kill anyone either," Damon growled. "But Stefan will kill me if something happens to you on my watch."

That statement didn't go unnoticed to her and she filed it away with the rest of her secrets of Damon. Like their trip to Georgia. "Great," she muttered. "I'm just a kept pet. Good to know Damon." She wanted them to be real friends. She didn't want the added tension with the three of them. It would be nice if she could spend time at the boarding house and not hate Damon.

He sighed and glared at her. "You're more trouble than you're worth Elena you know that?" he grumbled, but she knew she had won this argument and they just needed her teacher to leave.

Alaric used Damon's momentary distraction to launch himself in Damon's direction.

Damon spun their bodies away from Elena so the teacher landed hard on the floor. "God you don't give up," he muttered as Alaric got to his feet. "Elena, go upstairs." He gently nudged her in the direction but she shook her head and moved around him.

"Mr. Saltzman, stop," Elena said desperately as she grabbed his arm. But he pushed her roughly away from him and she tripped over the rug, crashing into the coffee table.

Damon flashed his fangs at Alaric and grabbed him by his shirt before tossing him towards the door where he landed at Stefan's feet. Stefan had perfect timing. Damon was seconds from ripping the man apart.

"What in the hell Damon?" Stefan growled, helping Alaric to his feet.

Damon ignored him and crouched by Elena's form. "She's out cold," he said, feeling the back of her head. He didn't feel any blood, just a bump. God she was stubborn.

Stefan stared at Alaric for a moment. "You need to leave," he said. "He isn't worth dying over." Stefan gently guided the saddened figure out of the house, away from Damon, before going to Elena's side. Carefully he scooped up his girlfriend and headed to the stairs.

Damon rubbed his face and grabbed an ice pack from the kitchen before following his brother. He didn't know why he was helping Elena but he couldn't stop himself. She seemed to be making a habit of saving his life. She was the only one who ever had before and it was throwing him off. He wasn't used to anyone looking out for him, especially not a human. But she wasn't Katherine. Katherine was all he wanted, but he knew that was a dream waving in the wind.

"You just have to start problems with everyone," Stefan said taking the ice and placing it on the back of Elena's head. "You're going to get Elena killed."

"You're girlfriend isn't a very good listener," Damon snarled. "He broke in and attacked me first. She wouldn't go upstairs."

"Whatever Damon," Stefan said. "I've told you before and I'm telling you again. Stay away from Elena."

Damon growled a little but left the room and a moment later Elena groaned as her eyes fluttered open. "Ow," she whimpered, her hand went to her head. She smiled a little at Stefan. "Hi."

"How are you feeling?" Stefan asked.

"My head hurts," she said sitting up. Her brain seemed to focus a little bit and she glanced around worriedly. "Damon didn't kill him did he?" She didn't know how long she had been out but her head was throbbing. But if Damon killed her teacher, and she was here, she didn't know what she was going to do. She could only lie so much for him about the things he did in his past. She frowned at the pull of her heart and how badly she didn't want him to be the soulless monster Stefan was convinced he was. She had seen glimpses of a good person. Many times.

"No he didn't. This is all Damon's fault," Stefan said. "I don't want him around you. He causes too many problems."

"You can't decide that Stefan," Elena said. "In some weird way, he's my friend Stefan." And she hated people telling her what to do. Whether it was the right thing to do or not, she was going to do the opposite. Stefan had some reason to be concerned but if Damon was going to be in Mystic Falls, Stefan had to deal with it.

"You want him around? He killed your mom," Stefan said. "Not to mention the nice bump on your head. How can you possibly want him in your life?"

"I just want to go home and rest," she said softly. She could sleep for days at this rate. She felt like a train had run her over and all that was on her mind was an aspirin and some sleep. "I don't want to worry about this tonight. No one died so I just want to sleep."

Stefan nodded and helped her up. "Let's get you home," he said kissing her forehead softly.

Elena snuggled into Stefan's side as they left the bedroom but her thoughts kept flickering to the older brother that had protected her. It hadn't been Damon's fault that she hit her head. And she didn't like the hurt feeling she had that he wasn't still here to see if she was okay. What was happening to her?


	3. Chapter 3

Over the course of the next weeks, Elena's life had continued to turn upside down. Stefan had been kidnapped by the tomb vampires but Damon had rescued him. It had been nothing short of scary but Stefan was recovering nicely. He hadn't been in school during that time, and even more so, she saw Damon more often. Damon picked her up from school everyday and they would hang out for a few hours at her house. She would do her homework and Damon would read one of his many books, and she found some solace in the small sense of normalcy in her life. However, she knew that all the time she spent with Damon couldn't have gone unnoticed by Stefan.

At the moment she was headed to the boarding house for dinner. Damon said that Stefan was better and she should come spend time with him. It was such an odd request from Damon, but truthfully, she missed Stefan. She wanted to help him get better but he hadn't wanted her help she stayed away. Her stomach was twisting in knots and as soon as she stepped through the door of the boarding house, a chill ran up her spine. "Stefan?" she called. "Damon?"

The next thing she knew there was a rush of air by across her cheek, a rough tug on her neck and Stefan appeared in front of her. "Hi Elena," he said softly.

Elena swallowed and rubbed her neck, realizing her necklace was missing and she immediately noticed it dangling from his fingers. Her brows creased together in confusion at his demeanor. "Give me my necklace," she demanded.

"It's mine," he said with a shrug.

"You gave it to me," she said sadly. "What's wrong with you?" He had a weird glint in his eye that she had never seen before and she didn't like it. Where the hell was Damon? She had never been truly scared of Stefan, except for right now.

"You think I like smelling you all over my brother all day everyday?" Stefan asked, raising an eyebrow. "You have no idea how much I love you and you're throwing it away for him."

"Damon is my friend Stefan," she said, softly. "Nothing has been going on. You didn't want to see me, remember?" She wasn't taking the blame for this. She couldn't believe that he thought something was going on with her and Damon.

"He's playing you Elena!" Stefan flared, causing her to jump. "Can't you see that?"

Elena rubbed her temple tiredly. "I'm going home." When he was calmer she would talk to him and work this out.

"No, you're not," he seethed, slamming her into the front door. "Guess we're doing this the hard way."

"Let go of me," Elena said struggling against his hold. There was a slight pain in her shoulder blades from the force of his blow. Stefan had never ever hurt her before now and she could feel her fear flowing through her veins. Damon had told her enough about the things he had done and how it was natural for them to thrive on fear.

Stefan's eyes dilated as peered into hers. "You're going to call Damon," he said, in a soothing voice. "Tell him you hate him and don't want to see him every again. You're in love with me."

"Call Damon," Elena dumbly with a nod as she pulled out her phone. She tried to fight his compulsion but there was nothing she could do. Her heart was crying out as she found Damon's number in her emergency contacts and she pressed send. She giggled as Stefan kissed the side of her neck and she listened to the dial tone as she waited for the older brother to answer.

"Hi Beautiful," Damon answer playfully. "I'm running late."

Oh god, Damon. She loved his pet names for her. She would probably never hear them again. "I was just calling to tell you that I don't think we should see each other anymore," she said as Stefan's hands moved under her shit. "I'm in love with Stefan and I don't want to see you." She felt sick inside, unable to do anything. Powerless to make her own choice on this matter.

"And you hate him," Stefan whispered in her ear before nipping softly.

"I hate you," she said immediately and Stefan took her phone from her, ending the call. I'm so sorry Damon. He had no reason to question her. They were barely friends at this point, everything between them still rocky and new. He killed her birth mother after all. Ever since their trip to Atlanta he had been less of a dick, at least to her. He had a soft spot for her and she had no questions over that, and she knew that he had been… devastated after Katherine's betrayal and she had helped him through that. But for all of it to be ruined just like that, was killing her.

"Now," he said with a smirk as he tugged her toward the stairs. "You'll all mine."

^%$$^&*^%$

Damon's head was swimming as he downed his umpteenth glass of alcohol. He had done everything he could to stay wasted. So when he was at home he could pass out and not have to look at Stefan's face or hear anything that may have been going on. He couldn't take it. Someone said his name in a soft voice and nearly snarled at her. He turned his body toward the witch that had a worried look on her face. "Have you seen Elena?" Bonnie asked. "Recently."

The sound of Elena's name warmed his heart a little and he couldn't help but be concerned about the girl. But he wasn't about to ask Bonnie how she was doing. "Not for two weeks," he muttered. Two weeks since she had plowed over him. It wasn't like he was putting the moves on her. He thought they were friends but apparently something had set her off. For the life of him, he didn't know what he had done.

"Something's wrong," Bonnie said firmly. "She's not herself… and she has weird bruises on her. She keeps saying she fell."

"She's clumsy," he said simply. She wasn't the most graceful person out there, so for her to trip over herself now and then didn't really phase him.

"It's something else," Bonnie said stubbornly. "She can't remember things. She has like holes in her memory, forgetting plans we made. She seems confused and Stefan… is mean to her."

Damon closed his eyes to try to focus through the haze the alcohol had him in. Different scenarios ran through his mind but he couldn't really settle on one. "Is she wearing her necklace?" he asked. "The one that Stefan gave her?" Maybe she lost her necklace and a vampire had gotten to her. But it wasn't like Stefan to miss something like that and handle it. The more important point, Bonnie wouldn't be standing her all but begging for his help. She hated him.

"No," Bonnie said as realization dawned on her face. "She's not."

Now the pieces started to fall into place. "Where is she?" he asked, getting to his feet, trying to shake off his drunken state as quickly as possible. He didn't think Stefan could be compelling her but Damon had been so drunk that he hadn't been paying attention to anything.

"Jenna's out of town," Bonnie said. "I'm supposed to meet her at her house for a little girl time, that she had to practically beg for."

"I'll try to talk to her," he said. "Break her compulsion. But I'm going to need you to do a spell to keep Stefan out."

"You really think Stefan is hurting her?" Bonnie asked.

"You do too or you wouldn't be standing here talking to me," he said, leaving the restaurant. Fear for Elena was quickly sobering him up as he headed to her house. He had thought her conversation with him on the phone had sounded strange but he had ignored it and let her do whatever she pleased with his brother. But now, if Stefan was compelling her, everything made sense. Stefan wouldn't want her anywhere near him.

"I'll be right down Bonnie!" Elena called as she struggled to cover her broken wrist. Easier said than done. It was hard enough to get dressed in the morning and the flimsy wrap on her limb didn't do much. She managed to convince everyone she had a sprain not a break but normal tasks were becoming more difficult. Eventually she was going to need medical treatment, but that would mean getting Jenna involved.

"So I figured it out," Damon said, startling her.

She gasped, out of surprise and slight jostle of her sore ribs as she faced him. "What do you want?" she asked coldly. "I was pretty clear that I wanted you to stay away from me." This was the first she had seen him since her phone call. He had to notice that her necklace was missing. He was going to notice everything else too.

Damon clenched his jaw and his eyes flickered to her wrist that was bent at and odd angle. She favored her left side, and he could feel the rage towards his brother boiling over. Carefully he approached her, not wanting to scare her anymore than she probably already was. "I'm stubborn," he said softly as he concentrated his senses and gently held her upper arms. He was a lot stronger then his brother. He could easily break Stefan's compulsion.

Elena pushed at the solid wall of his chest with her good hand. "What are you…" she trailed off as Damon's power moved through her mind, unlocking her confusion. Her memories carefully slid into place, reality colliding with the illusion Stefan had built around her. Her eyes filled up with tears as she focused on his face. "Damon…"

His hands gently cradled her cheeks as he thumbs caressed her wet skin. "There's my girl," he whispered.

Warmth spread through her at the sheer closeness of him. His words washed over her, soothing her, calming her. "It was like being stuck in my own mind," she said with a sniffle. "I tried to fight it. I really did."

"Shhhh," he soothed, wrapping his arms around her. "I got you now."

Elena gasped in pain and pulled back from him. "Sorry," she said turning a light shade red.

Her injuries were obviously a lot worse then he thought. "What's wrong?" he asked gently grabbing her hand, causing her to cry out. He paused and gently pulled the sleeve up, revealing the purplish peeking out from the ace bandage. "It's broken." His fingers carefully unwrapped the bandage from her, wincing at the damage. Definitely broken. Over the years he knew how to break a wrist in the proper way to cause pain. It killed him to see Elena suffering from it. "What happened?"

"I fell," she said automatically, trying to pull her hand away as a knock sounded at he door, causing her to jump again.

"Spells up," Bonnie said worriedly. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," Elena said, trying desperately to move her wrist from everyone's line of sight. She didn't want Damon or anyone to see her like this. She wasn't weak. She was going to pull through this.

"I'll um… leave you two alone," Bonne said. "I'll call you tomorrow." She smiled softly before leaving the two brunettes along.

"Let's get you fixed up," he said, gently guiding her to the bathroom. He dug around in the unfamiliar cabinets gathering the various items he would need. "Elena," he said seriously. "I can help you feel better. I just need you to trust me."

"I don't want your pity," she mumbled, squeezing the sweatshirt around her. She looked scared and nervous and he couldn't blame her.

"It's not pity Elena," he said firmly. "It's concern. I can't help you if aren't honest with me."

She bit her lip as tears stung her eyes once again. "Help me get his off," she pleaded, her hands tugging at the hem.

Damon carefully maneuvered the fabric around her injury, finally tossing it to the floor, leaving her in a sports bra. It had been over a century since he had felt sick, but now, staring at her marred flesh, made him sick to his stomach. "Elena," he said softly as he took in the various purple, blue and black colors on her smooth skin. He glanced at the items on the counter which wouldn't do anything for half her injuries. Stefan did a number on him. "Um… if I give you some of my blood, all these will go away and you're wrist won't hurt." He couldn't remember the last time he had offered someone his blood purely for their own safety. "I know it's scary, but afterward you won't be in any pain."

Elena chewed on her lip but the pain was unbearable so she nodded. "I trust you," she said softly.

"We should sit," he said softly going back her room, locking the door so they wouldn't have interruptions. He sat with his back against the headboard, and she slowly climbed between his knees, wincing when she moved the wrong way. "Just relax." His hands gently ghosted over her back, hoping to calm her somewhat and he bit into his wrist carefully before moving it around to in front of her. As soon as he felt the suckling motion from her lips he used his free hand to expertly set the bones in her wrist. She cried out against his flesh but his blood worked quick. He pulled his wrist back and licked the wound closed. "Okay?" The bruises started fading from her skin and he was sure she'd be more comfortable moving around now.

"Yeah," she said moving the stiff joins of her wrist around. "Thank you." She relaxed against him, surprised at how safe she felt with him.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked carefully, leaning his cheek against the top of her head. He wanted to rip Stefan's head off right this second but he knew that would come later. What mattered right now was the girl in his arms.

"He was always mad at me," she said softly. "I was always in trouble and I never knew why. I knew he was making me be mean to you and I couldn't make it stop. It just got worse."

"Bonnie thought something was wrong," he said. "Took both of us to put it together." He carefully moved her next to him and pulled the covers over them. "You should get some sleep."

"You're… staying?" she asked with a yawn.

"Yep," he said smugly as his arm banded around her waist gently but firmly. "You Miss Gilbert are stuck with me for the rest of your life."

A soft giggle escaped her lips. "How will I survive?"


End file.
